The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1887-02-11
Lecture by Hiss Frances T.. willard,
President of the National w. 4.
y. u. at Association Hail. PhiIa-
dci.phia, on wednesday Even
Ing, Jam. 10. 1857.


Mrs. President AND KIND FRIENDS:
| was thinking how homelike this place
seems could almost make myseifbe
it is the old Convention over again, except
that We have not the banners; and | was
thinking how at that Convention the Rev.
DR.. Da Costa, of New York, came before us
and fol the first time in my life, and | pre-
sumo in the lives of many who are here to-
night, we heard an address on the White
Cross and Social Purity. 1t made a deep
impressions am sure, upon the mind of ey
crybody who heard it. | did not dream
when listening to the Doctor that it would
he my lot to stand as the representation of
this department in our society; but we had
tried, and earnestly, bnt vainly, to get some
lady who would make this her special work,
and as we seemed to be unable to do So at
last by the request of the general officers, |
agreed to stand in the place until some one
else could be raised to give it her whole
time. And so for over year it has been
very much in my thought, and assure you,
kind friends, that have never known a de-
partment of work which has seemed to take
so rapid and deep hold upon the people
and so spontaneously to meet the average
view as a fitting and 4 most righteous cause,
cause in which it was the duty of the
White Ribboners to engage. And so COM
ing before you this evening, it seems like
providential as well rs poetic justice to open
this theme in this hall where we first agreed
to take mp the White Cross work. | am
to try to speak while concerning those
for the peace of our home Jerusalem, and
OF our nation.
You have been singing ''Nearer my God
to Thee 1t seems to me that there is no
hymn which gives us more clearly, more
sweetly, more sacredly, the key to this great
endeavor than the one which you have sung.
] believe the deepest inspiration and the
hi ,hest aspiration of every spirit is voiced
in that great hymn Of all nations and all
creeds, NEARER my God to Thee" 1t is
from this point of view that | would like
to consider the subject for while and ask
you, dear friends, to pray Gods blessing
on us all, and that his spirit may be so
present with us that we shall not be all I'M
worthy of this high and sacred hour.
There is a story told about two bright
young ladies, who in their vacation season
went down on the coast at seaside water
ing place of England, and going out the
e. I,a;r nil oil
acquainted with the locality, but wishing
to take pleasant walk, they went along
ledge where the danger was greater than
they knew, and talking blithely in girlish
fashion, suddenly the one that was nearest
the edge of the danger became bewildered.
She grew dizzy. She lost her footing. Her
little foot slipped over the edge, and with
pitiful and sobbing cry she went down upon
the beulders far below, where the waves
and the breakers churned themselves per-
petually into spray and into foam. The
one who had not fallen rushed up the steep
ascent back to the little village near by,
crying out sob! come and help me! She's
lost! She's fallenr' and there was no lack
Oh ineH strong ana pIdNc W SiNc tilcii pest
and sturdest endeavor going down pain
fully and at some risk to themselves to reach
that poor battered form, and putting the
crushed frame upon Il litter they had
brought, which they had strem N with their
own coats, which they took off for the pnr
pose, and lifting her up to the level of their
shoulders they made their way back again
to the village; ard as the sorrowfl process
sion passed along the little winding street,
mothers gathered their little ones closely to
their sides and looking on after it, said to
the boys so ptifully She's fallen! She's
lostr' and brave men were not ashamed Of
the tears upon their checks as they echoed
the cry ''She's fallenl aud yet she was
young and fair!'